Mosquitoes shouldn’t be allowed to ruin another summer for visitors, locals, and businesses in Fort Langley, a community group calling for better anti-bug measures says.
The Fort Langley Community Association (FLCA) published an open letter to the Langley Township mayor and council on Feb. 6, about last year’s high mosquito population.
“The mosquitoes in 2022 prevented businesses from flourishing, the campground had no choice but to refund bookings, and residents couldn’t enjoy their backyards, work outside, visit the riverfront, or partake in festivals and the weekly farmers’ market without being bitten by mosquitoes,” the letter said.
Last summer was a particularly bad year for victims of the blood-sucking insects, because of weather factors.
People in the Fort dubbed it the worst year in recent memory, thanks to high water on the Fraser River early in the summer, following a long, damp spring.
Mosquitoes lay their eggs on river banks, and the eggs lay dormant until the high water hits the eggs, and they hatch. A higher freshet – the spring rise in the river as snow melts in the Interior – means more mosquitoes. Last year’s was both high and late, so a lot of mosquitoes hatched all at once during the peak of summer.
This year, the FLCA wants proactive protection.
The Township is a participant in the Metro Vancouver Regional Nuisance Mosquito Control Program. FLCA wants the program to plan for the summer now, and increase mitigation efforts in the Langley area “substantially.”
According to Shaun Calver of Morrow Bioscience, which contracts for mosquito control with Metro Vancouver, last year high water led to a lot of mosquitoes hatching all at once. About three years worth, in fact.
However, he said this year may not be as bad.
“The hope is that it won’t be,” he said.
The quantity of mosquitoes in Fort Langley and other shoreline areas is dependent on the Interior snowpack – more snow on the mountains means a higher Fraser River in May, June, and July, and more mosquitoes hatching. Less snow means fewer bloodsuckers.
Right now, the snowpack is below average.
“That could always change,” Calver notes.
The usual mitigation method is to attack mosquito larvae – which swim around in the water before emerging as the flying, biting insects – with a non-toxic, naturally occurring bacteria. It kills about 85-90 per cent of larvae.
Calver said their efforts usually start in early May, with minimal treatments if the water stays low. The end of “mosquito season” depends on when the water recedes again.
If water stays high for a long time, as we’ve seen in some recent years, you also see “seepage,” as water rises and pools even behind the dikes and rail lines along the Fraser, adding even more spawning ground for mosquitoes.
In a typical season, the water recedes for good sometime in July.
READ MORE: Mosquito swarms irk visitors to Fort Langley, Fraser River’s shores
READ ALSO: Beat the bite: expected rise in B.C. mosquitoes calls for preventative practices
Have a story tip? Email: matthew.claxton@langleyadvancetimes.com
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.